Colombia’s Leicy Santos says she would like a potential World Cup final with Spain

Colombia’s win over Jamaica in the Round of 16, a victory which set them up for a quarter-final clash against England, was a historic feat for the country. Not only had they never reached the final 8 before, but Colombia are now the only team from South American remaining in the competition. For Leicy Santos, The Lionesses will present a challenge similar to that of Germany in the group stage, but we all know what happened there.

After the win over Jamaica, Colombia’s number 10 took time to speak to the media to remember her club team, Atlético Madrid, as well as talk about a potential final game against Spain, which she described as “incredibly difficult”.

Leicy praises Atlético Madrid

Leicy Santos is a key member of the national team: against Jamaica she came close to scoring, but her short stature came close to finding the back of the net with a diving header that clattered the post. “In the first chance my height went against me and in the second [the shot against the post], I tried to place it”, Santos told AS.

After the game, the player’s club sent a message to her on their social media account. Leicy could not finish the season in Spain due to an injury but she still performed in her role as one of the leaders in the dressing room, which is the reason she was sent a message by Atlético Femenino president, Lola Romero, who is well aware of her success in the tournament.

“My club is always there”, Leicy said, “I have them in my heart. The manager Manolo speaks to me, as does the President. They are watching what happens with me, with Colombia. They see my happiness as their own and in that sense the club is family and that’s something beautiful.”

Colombia vs England ‘will be a little like the match against Germany’, says Santos

On Saturday 12 August at the Olympic Stadium in Sydney, Colombia will fight for their lives at the World Cup against England in the quarter-finals. Sarina Weigman’s side had to go all the way to penalties to beat Nigeria in the previous round but their qualities are still evident as the European Champions. In the Colombian team, they see the game as a tough task and one on which Colombia will need to take advantage of any chance that falls their way - and they are even the favourites to go through.

“It’s a complicated opponent, they play football well, they have a lot of quality on the ball and in that sense we’ll have to play an intelligent game. It will be a little like the match against Germany in that sense, waiting waiting for the right moment to find a chance to score and taking advantage of the spaces that they can leave; we will look at how to stop them”, she said.

‘Spain is a really tough opponent’

Spain and Colombia are the only two remaining teams who are taking part in the World Cup quarter finals for the first time. Leicy Santos arrived in Spain in 2019 and was the first player to touch down from Colombia for over $10,000. Despite there being plenty of football to be played ahead of the final, the attacking midfielder is already weighing up a potential clash.

“Spain is a really tough opponent. They have a lot of potential to get to the final. Hopefully [Spain vs Colombia] happens, but I want to go game by game, thinking about the National Team, my team have a huge challenge ahead of us now”, she concluded.